Sound Peace

Stress Relief Through Shamanic Drumming

Shamanic Drumming has been used since ancient times for healing and releasing anger as well.  It is also great way to to release stress and frustration.  You can do this by combining drumming, yogic breathing and some vocalizing. 

The next time you come home from work feeling stressed out or angry try this shamanic drumming meditation.  You'll need some kind of frame drum, hand drum and mallet or if you don't have a drum you can just use you hands on your thighs while in a seated position.  Go someplace you will be undisturbed for about 10 to 15 minutes

1. Play a steady 4/4 beat on the drum at a medium tempo.  

2. Next start doing yogic breathing in the following way - take a breath into your belly so you belly rises and then push the air up into your chest so your chest expands. 

3. Then exhale your breath out and let your belly relax and become soft.  Breathe fully and slowly.

4. Start to time your breaths with the rhythm you are playing on the drum.  If you are doing the drum beat at a medium tempo it should feel comfortable to use four beats for the inhale and about 6 for the exhale.  Adjust your breathing and your breath until both the drumming and the breathing feel natural to you.

You might find it works better for you with 6 or 8 beats for the inhale and 8 to 10 beats for exhale. If you find it is more comfortable for make the exhale the same time as the inhales that's fine but if you can make the exhales longer you will find this to be more relaxing.

5. After a few minutes change your exhale so that you are saying the word "HO" with the exhale.  Time it with one of the drum hits.  After you say the word HO keep breathing out until the number of beats for the exhale you have chosen in completed and then start the inhale.  When you say the word HO say it forcibly so the breath is expelled as you say the word.

Make sure to time the breaths so you can exhale completely.  If you feel lightheaded then change the timing of the beats so that you have plenty of time to get all the air out of your lungs before you inhale.

6. As you breathe in imagine you are breathing in healing life force energy and as you breath out imagine all of your stress, frustration and anger  coming out.

7. After you are done spend a few moments with your eyes closed breathing normally and enjoy a serene feeling of inner peace.

— Steve Gordon

Learn to Meditate in 10 Minutes

 

Yes, it's true.  You can learn the basics of meditation in the 10 minutes it takes you to read this article.

There are countless books and courses promising to teach you to meditate and the fact is that you can learn it on your own after you know a few techniques.  Once your learn the technique however, it can take years to perfect it.  That's why many people call it their "practice."

But even if you are new to meditation, you can start to reap the benefits of it such as letting go of stress, being more relaxed throughout the day, better heart health, more creativity, better concentration and better clarity right away.

The main idea with meditation is that the mind needs an object to focus on and if you don't provide one it will find endless things to focus on all by itself.  In the east they say the mind is like a drunken monkey.  This is their way of saying that your mind will be constantly filled with thoughts if you let it run it's natural course. 

It's not that thinking is a bad thing; it can be often be a good way to decide things, figure things out, etc.  But there are often times when thoughts can contribute to stress and rob your sense of inner peace and relaxation.  Thoughts can also get in the way of experiencing the moment.  If you are thinking about what you are experiencing then you are not fully experiencing it.

There are many types of meditation but these three basic types are all your need to get started; Mantra Meditation, Zen Breath meditation and Music meditation.

With both of these kinds of meditation, first do this:

Find a quiet place where you will be undisturbed.  You can either sit upright with your spine straight such as in a chair, sitting on the floor against the wall or your can sit cross legged in the meditation pose or half lotus, or if you are adapt at yoga in the full lotus pose.  Your hands can be on your knees or together with your fingers interlocked (my favorite).

Close your eyes and imagine that the world and all it's complexity are moving away from you and you are in safe within your inner world, a place of infinite space and infinite peace.

Optional: Focus your awareness at the place on your forehead between and above your eyes.  This is known as the third eye or ajna (brow) chakra.

Let your breathing naturally slow and breathe by relaxing your stomach and letting it extend out on the inhale.  This is yogic breathing.

At this point you can do one of three things:

Mantra Meditation

Choose a mantra, or short word or phrase to repeat silently in your mind as your meditate.  Here are a few you can try:

Om Shanti
Om - Breathing in
Shanti - Breathing out

Om is the Indian word for the sound of the universe, the seed sound of existence.
Shanti means peace.

So Hum
So - Breathing in
Hum - Breathing out

So Hum means "I am that" (so = "I am" and hum = "that").  "That" is referring to the entire universe.  So chanting So Hum helps you to feel a part of everything.

Om Mani Padme Hum
Om Mani - Breathing in
Padre Hum - Breathing Out

Om Mani Padme Hum
This Tibetan Buddhist mantra means "I am the jewel at the center of the lotus." although many believe that it's true meaning can only be known through meditation.

You can also make up your own mantras such as "I am at Peace" or "all is one" but I personally prefer ancient mantras because ancient languages such as Sanskrit were actually created with the effect that the vibrations of the words would have upon meditation.

Keep mentally repeating the mantra for the length of your meditation.  If you find yourself drifting away from the mantra into thoughts then gently return again and again to the mantra.  Think of your thoughts as white clouds that drift across the sky of your mind.  Do not chase them or try to hard to push them away.  Just let them be and return to the mantra.

Zen Breath Meditation

With Zen meditation, instead of repeating a mantra just repeat:

"I am breathing in" - Breathing in
"I am breathing out" - Breathing out

Eventually try to move from repeating these phrases mentally to just listening to the sound of your breath and use the sound of your breath instead of the words.

With practice you can actually use the sound of your breath to focus your mind on.

Music Meditation

This works the same as Zen breath meditation but instead of focusing on the sound of your breath, you let the music be your thought.  This requires music created specifically for meditation.  My brother David and I have been creating this kind of music for over 25 years and you can find some of our favorites here  Sequoia Records Meditation Music

Whether you use a mantra, breath or music, after just a few sessions, complete your practice with a moment of gratitude for what you have received.

You will start to experience a wonderful feeling of peace and pleasure during and after your meditations.

Nowadays with all the technology and complexity of modern life, spending some time meditating on a regular basis can serve you as your own personal place that you can go to no matter where you are.  A place to rest your body and mind and renew your spirit.

Even short periods of time such as 5 to 10 minutes can be beneficial.  But if you can spare 20 minutes or more you'll really start to understand how good it can feel.  You can do it when you first wake up, for a break during the day or before bed. 

— Steve Gordon

The Harmony of Disharmony - The Power of Acceptance

When something happens in your day that reveals a conflict with another person or a situation that causes you pain it is always best to seek out the response to it that will solve the problem.  By solving the problem you are able to transform the disharmony to harmony.  But when we have the belief that this can always be accomplished if only we were conscious enough, aware enough, clever enough, creative enough or non-reactive enough, this is not always the case.   If you have empathy and leave you ego at the door, you can make it through most situations that have conflict by dis-arming the conflict and transforming it into at the very least an only uncomfortable experience instead of an actual conflict.

But part of the truth of life is that sometimes there is no harmonious path.  Sometimes there is no choice that will result in harmony.  When it comes to other people and situations that you can't control, it's important to remember to accept what is without judgment.  For reasons that we may not understand, life does sometimes contain conflicts that we can't always transform. 

Accepting that truth, does transform ourselves though because when we accept the world and everyone in it as it is, we are able to fully inhabit the present moment and feel the perfection of the world as it is evolving in this moment without needing it to be different.  This unconditional love for the world and everyone in it is in fact the harmony we seek. 

Once you are feeling that acceptance, then go ahead and seek out the most harmonious path.  When you approach it without lust of result you may find that you are able to transform it and if not it will not be a source of your own disharmony.

- Steve Gordon

Staying Inspired through Music

"If you can imagine it, you can achieve it; if you can dream it, you can become it."  - William Arthur Ward

We find that we have been listening to music more often these days.  It has been a real source of inspiration for us.

All the power we have to create the lives we desire first begins we feeling inspired.  It is through inspiration that we allow ourselves to have a clear vision of what we want.  You can't create it until you can see it.  Once you see it and feel inspired about doing it then you can move into the stage of taking action.  Then while you are in the doing phase you continue to rely on your initial inspiration to keep you going when you hit obstacles. 

Whatever it is that you want to create for yourself, remember to take time every day to be inspired.  Creating a collection of just the right music is an inexpensive way to keep yourself inspired, hopeful and motivated. 

- Steve Gordon

A Glimpse of a Hint of a Promise

 

Something is possible. It starts small, interrupts my routine with a mysterious sensation, just a glimmer. I don’t yet know what it is, but it’s golden and peaceful, waiting to be unlocked – to be savored, given and received. A creation, a connection,… simple appreciation…  Wait! Thinking too hard, it may slip away!   So I stand and stretch, move and breathe, entering the space between thoughts. I feel a smile come to my face. An opening appeared in time and somehow I was ready to notice.

What will I do with this opening?  I feel that I know, but I can’t explain it.  So I let the moment take me; receive the communication from my self, or my Self, or whatever mystery brings this space out of time.

Thoughts and words drive away the essence.  The experience wants to be expressed but the expression is too loud, too wordy; disturbs the silence, the moment passes.

And then – the feeling after the feeling like ripples in a pond. The promise remains, quiet and close. In the center is balance. Beyond the dark clouds there is rain under the sun.

-- David Gordon

Meditation, Gratitude and Prosperity

During uncertain times like these, we have both found something of great value in meditating on a regular basis. When you quiet your mind and go within, you find that the answer to feelings of fear are in focusing instead on the gratitude you feel for those things you still have to be grateful for.

The more you focus on what you are grateful for, the happier you feel, and it is this happiness that leads to enthusiasm and confidence which lead to prosperity. With this in mind, resolve to begin each day as the Native American shaman teach, with thanks to the creator for your life and for each day.

The best way to do this is to remember that many of the great teachers have always said, that the past is gone and the future does exist yet. It is only in the present moment that we find the joy of life. As Seth/Jane Roberts has said "The present is the point of power. There is no finished past or preordained future."

So the present moment is where we find both happiness as well as the power to create the future we desire. If we can spend the present free of fear and filled with gratitude, we are then in our most resourceful place to create what we need.

In the last month we have continued to work on our next release, Sound Peace which is the second volume of our 25th Anniversary Collection that will be released in Feb. Listening to these soothing and healing songs has been very welcome during this time and we hope that it will help to make everyone's lives a little more peaceful when they hear it also.

Longer Nights, Falling Leaves; the Start of Renewal

With the autumnal equinox, the days become shorter, and the Earth prepares for the season of transition to renewal. Though the winter to follow brings long nights, therein rest the seeds of renewal.

We find inspiration in these images of autumn in the forests of New England - and offer them with music of deep trance drums, native flutes, world instruments, and ancient Lakota and Tibetan shaman chants:

"Wakan Tankan Lila Wankan." Great Spirit, most Sacred... Gratitude leads the Shaman to his animal spirit ally. "Gate Gate Paragate Parasam Gate Bodhi Swaha." Gone, gone beyond, everyone gone completely beyond. Awake, well gone!... Transcending all that is impermanent, the Shaman crosses to spirit consciousness to help relieve all suffering of the earth and its peoples.

The title of the song is South Wind Meeting. This version (the Harvest Mix) appears along with the video on our CD+DVD two disc set, Earth Drum. The full length meditation version of the chant appears along with chants for each of the four seasons and four directions on our album Shaman's Vision Journey.

Studio notes: With this song we combined Lakota and Tibetan chants with the deep trance sounds of African dun dun drums and talking drums, Sioux frame drums, Taos rattles, acoustic guitar, ambient electric guitar and specially created drone sounds. The imagery of nature environments in the fall season help to convey the sense of the sacred and eternal within us.

Walk in Balance,
David Gordon

7 Secrets for a balanced summer, Part 2

5. Being Present
Since we spend more time outdoors often in nature during the summer, it is great time to develop a greater ability to stay in the present moment because being in nature makes it easier to stay in the now. By letting go of thoughts concerning the past or the future and being in the now we can increase our enjoyment of the summer.

6. Positive Awareness
Often our minds can get stuck in judging each experience which reduces our enjoyment of things that we might be able to enjoy if only we could accept it as it is and experience it fully. As you go about your way this summer, remember to focus on the positive parts of your summer. Positive affirmations can work really well for this. You can write your own and read them every morning or evening before bed.

7. Balanced Fun
Summer is often a time when we might be tempted to overdue things we enjoy and it can get us out of balance. This can lead to feeling less healthy and peaceful. As you enjoy your summer remember that you will have a deeper more satisfying summer if you stay connected to your own center and inner guidance.

7 Secrets for a balanced summer, Part 1.

1. Staying Cool
Since the temperature is warm, keep your body in balance by staying hydrated. Drink plenty of water by keeping a water bottle with you at all times. Drink healthy iced herbal teas. Eat lots of summer fruit especially watermelon. Make sure to also eat lots of salads and grilled summer vegetables. You can even try chilled soups.

2. Being Healthy
In the summer it's easy to get off of our usual exercise routines because our schedules are different. Make sure to keep up your usual schedule so you can stay healthy and keep up your energy for whatever your do this summer. If you are traveling, make sure to walk every day in the early morning or evening. Take care of your skin by always using sunscreen, but choose ones without harmful chemicals or nanoparticles.

3. Keeping the Peace
If you already meditate regularly make sure to keep up your practice during the summer. Even though summer is a great time it can also be distracting and stressful because you may be trying to fit so much in. Regular meditation and yoga - even on trips, can help a lot in maintaining equilibrium and staying centered. If you don't meditate yet, summer is a nice time to begin since you can easily meditate outside in nature which can make meditation much easier. Also remember to breathe deeply no matter what you are doing so you can stay connected to your body's natural rhythm and inner peace.

4. Enlightened Travel
Often when we travel it can be stressful. If you maintain a sense of awe and reverence for each new place you visit you can transform your travel into a sacred journey. No matter how close to home or exotic your destination, by cultivating an awareness of the sacred in the mundane, you can find transformation and wisdom in your travels. You will return with a deeper sense of peace.

How to do a Drum Meditation

Just as with silent meditation, the goal is to clear your mind and connect with the earth and yourself, to feel whole and peaceful. But unlike with silent meditation where you withdraw your senses from the external world, with drum meditation, instead you make the sound of the drum, the feel of the drum, and the movement of playing the drum the focus of your mind.

To begin close your eyes and play a simple steady beat. There is no mantra. The sound of the drum is the mantra. If you find yourself drifting off into thoughts then gently lead your mind back to the sound of the drum and the feeling of playing it. As you feel the meditation deepening you can add rhythms you feel guided to play. Your heartbeat will connect you to the rhythm.

The more time you spend the more you will feel connected and serene. When your feel ready, slowly open your eyes and do a little stretching. Notice the sense of renewal and rejuvenation you feel.

Drum Meditation is a great way to:

• Access your own creative spirit
• Reduce stress
• Increase personal power
• Improve concentration and focus
• Get out of your head and into your body
• Stimulate creativity
• Cultivate joy
• Create more peace of mind

Drumming has been used for thousands of years to heal and empower. For people nowadays it can be an easy way to unwind and connect with inner balance and joy.